WASHINGTON — In a CBS This Morning interview Tuesday, U.S. Senator Mitt Romney said the Republican Party's principles "are very much in question" and the GOP will need to make decisions about its principles in the coming years.
"I think the party is uncertain of the course that we're going to take going forward. The principles that have long been the hallmark of my party are very much in question, which is: Do we believe in balancing the budget? Do we believe in standing up to people like Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin? Are we committed to the principle that character counts? There are all things that I think we're going to have to decide over the coming years," Sen. Romney said when asked if the GOP has fractured amid President Trump's attempts to overturn his loss to President-elect Biden.
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Earlier this year, Romney was the sole Republican who voted to convict President Trump of abuse of power during the president's impeachment proceedings. On Tuesday, Romney said his vote was not universally panned among his Republican colleagues.
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"I got a call the next day from John Cornyn, who is one of our leaders, as you know, and a strong Trump supporter. He said 'Mitt, I wouldn't want to be part of any group that didn't respect someone for doing what their conscience told them to do.' That was a message that came, also, from Mitch McConnell and several other of my colleagues. Look, we disagree with each other from time to time, but there really is respect within our party and, frankly, across the aisle. People like each other, get along with each other. It's a very positive aspect of the Senate that I, frankly, hadn't anticipated," Romney said.
Click here to watch the full interview.
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